The present invention relates to instant messaging. More particularly, the present invention relates to taking an instant message chat offline without a connection to an IM server.
Instant messaging (IM) chat is generally recognized as real-time communication between users of network devices, such as computers, cell phones, PDAs or other appliances capable of connecting to a network. A “chat,” or chat session, is initially set up through an IM service provider based on the policies and security measures promulgated by that provider. An IM server acts as a security point ensuring that connections are established under the service provider's policies and security measures. Once policy rules and security measures have been met, a chat connection is established between a user's device and an IM server controlled by the IM service provider. The chat connection opens a channel for messaging to and from other IM participants connected to the IM server. The IM server ensures that all of the IM participants comply with the service provider's policies and protects the participants from receiving unauthorized and unwanted messages. Only authorized participants, that is, those participants whose identities are confirmed by the IM server during connection to an IM session, and authorized to connect to the IM server, can send and receive messages across the IM service platform. The IM server ensures that all messages forwarded to an IM participant are from the network device that originally connected to the IM server. Once a chat has been established, the participants use their respective network devices to communicate by text, voice, still images, video, real time video or other media with other participants on their respective network devices. An IM service platform may be a consumer messaging service, such as AOL® Instant Messenger (AIM®) (AOL and AIM are registered trademarks of America Online, Inc. in the United States, foreign countries, or both) and Yahoo!® Messenger (Yahoo! Is a registered trademark of Yahoo! Inc. in the United States, foreign countries, or both), or, alternatively, may be a commercial IM service that is restricted to certain classes of users, such as employees of a particular corporation. Many networks, online services and corporations support IM chat service platforms.
Users of an IM service typically maintain a “buddy list” (or peer list) of the IM participants (buddies) that they consent to receive messages from. This list can be displayed as a graphical user interface (GUI) on the user's device. The display list indicates the current connection status for each of the user's buddies. The IM service provider continually monitors the IM connections to the IM server and notifies all interested IM participants in the event of a change in the connection status for a buddy. When a user initially connects to an IM server, the IM service provider updates user's display list with the current connection status for all of the user's buddies. Buddies can then message each other merely by selecting a name on the list that is currently connected to the IM server.
Chat sessions typically take the form of one-on-one chats or group chats. One-on-one is where a chat session is started by one of the participants who invites the other participant to join the chat. The ‘invitation’ is frequently just the appearance of a chat screen on the invitees screen. Group chats are similar, but the number of participants is usually greater than two. Most chat sessions are established via server based chat sessions for a variety of reasons, including privacy, the ability to have a record of the conversation, manageability, etc. Server-based chats are usually predicated on a user's buddy list, but may also involve messaging between participants not on each others buddy lists. Each participant in a server-based chat session must indicate a willingness to join the other participants in the messaging session. While security rules and policies vary between IM service providers, in a one-to-one messaging session, both participants must agree to interact in order to establish the session. Once a chat session has been established, the security rules may require that each participant in the private session consent to any other participants joining the private IM session. As can be appreciated, a user can participate in multiple simultaneously ongoing IM sessions.